This breeding ground for talent promotes artists and designers, from modern art and contemporary sculptural design, by taking over places as legendary as they are unusual, to make them the setting for its exhibitions. 

The innovative approach of the Attali brothers’ Philia gallery is to create a true dialogue with the history of places in prime spaces around the world. The two founders, passionate about art, literature, and philosophy, have set up their nursery in Geneva, New York, Singapore, and Mexico City. For Ygaël Attali, the goal is to transcend social, cultural, and geographic boundaries by celebrating art and design. In the spirit of a cabinet of curiosities, their vast collection is thus nomadic and heterogeneous, beyond their permanent spaces. After the artists’ residency at Atelier Alain Ellouz in Bièvres, Essonne, and the exhibition “Héritages” at Le Corbusier’s Cité Radieuse in Marseille, the gallery is taking over two villas by Jean Nouvel in the Côte d’Azur for the first time in France, commissioned by Rivere Group.

Sculptural and avant-garde beauty

The Villa Maeterlinck in Nice and the villa in St-Jean-Cap-Ferrat are two jewels integrated into the landscape with private views of the Mediterranean. For Jean Nouvel, they are an ode to their aerial roots. The first, carved into the rock, dissipates the boundary between interior and exterior thanks to sliding partitions. The second, covered by a glass roof with a metal frame, breathes through the permanent presence of the flora and knows how to be discreet from the outside. Here the gallery continues to strengthen the links between its works, the aesthetics of architecture and the natural environment. Among the many pieces on display are Andres Monnier’s hand-carved stone fireplace in the patio, Gerard Kuijpers’ Dancing Stones, Arno Declercq’s daybed, and Jörg Pietschmann’s solid oak bench. The exhibition also presents work by Frederic Saulou, Rick Owens, Elsa Foulon, Sam Szafran, Flora Temnouche, and Mateo Revillo. The collection thus superbly dresses the spaces in a scenography echoing the style of the French architect.

Nathalie Dassa